This invention relates to knee supports and, in particular, to a support adapted to prevent injuries to the knee and/or provide support for an already injured or weakened knee and is capable of stabilizing the knee without impairing circulation and normal flexibility.
The human knee is subjected to a wide variety of compressive, bending, twisting and lateral forces, particularly, when the individual is active in physically strenuous activities. Injuries to the knee are quite common among athletes and the general public. The most common occurring injuries relate to stretching or tearing of the various knee ligaments, injury to the cartilage and particular surfaces of the knee joint, and fractures. These type injuries are quite troublesome, because of the mechanical characteristics of the human limb joint. Furthermore, the repetitive, abnormal lateral excursions which cause abnormal shearing forces, frequently lead to early, accelerated and progressive degenerative changes in the bones of the joint.
Individuals who have sustained knee injuries, who have had operations to remove cartilage, or who have weak knee joints from causes such as arthritis primarily need protection against lateral motion of the knee in a direction transverse in the plane of flexion and extension, such as might be caused by a blow to the side of the knee. At the same time, a suitable knee support should not interfere with the normal flexion and extension of the leg. The support should protect the knee against sideways motions during both flexion and extension. As the healing process of a knee injury progresses, it has been difficult to provide support and bracing which is adjustable to meet the condition of a wearer from the initial several days of when the joint is most swollen, to the following days when swelling decreases gradually, and, later, over the ensuing weeks when gradually less bracing and support of the knee is required.
A frequently employed approach to support a weakened knee has been to apply adhesive tape around the joint in order to provide some measure of protection and added strength. This approach is expensive since it requires the time of a trainer, requires someone with knowledge of how to properly wrap the adhesive tape, and uses a significant amount of tape which is not reusable. Also, it leads to discomfort arising from impaired circulation and during the removal of the tape from the skin.
Other supports include various elastic sleeves, some using stiffeners to provide additional strength to the support in an effort to assist the wearer. Many of such sleeves are uncomfortable to wear because of seams which exert pressure on the popliteal area, i.e., the back side of the knee.
Other prior art devices include knee supports and braces characterized by hinges on the lateral and medial side of the knee, some have been characterized by straps, and some have employed belts or have utilized spiral wrappings extending above and below the kneecap.